Pure sulfur is a tasteless, odourless, brittle solid that is pale yellow in colour, a poor conductor of electricity, and insoluble in water. It reacts with all metals except gold and platinum, forming sulfides; it also forms compounds with several nonmetallic elements.
Sulfur is used in the vulcanisation of black rubber, as a fungicide and in black gunpowder. Most sulfur is, however, used in the production of sulfuric acid, which is perhaps the most important chemical manufactured by western civilisations.